Autumn rolls in to the sound of Vivaldi's great Four Seasons and Beethoven's Symphony No. 7! With these luminous pieces, choreographers Mauro Bigonzetti and Uwe Sholz dare the impossible and take up the enormous challenge of expressing something new through these famous classical pieces. Mauro Bigonzetti draws out the internal seasons of Man in all his moods and swings. And the exceptionally talented German choreographer signs one of his masterworks on a piece that Richard Wagner described as "the apotheosis of the dance. With remarkable musicality, these ballets on pointe, as finely cut as a diamond, sweep away everything in their path. A memorable evening of music and dance!
Structured in four movements that form a succession of different colors and rhythms, Beethoven’s Symphony No 7 was presented for the first time in 1813, during the terrible time of the Napoleonic Wars. Characterized by Richard Wagner as “the apotheosis of the dance”, Symphony No 7, dionysian in inspiration, fascinates both in its rigorous classicism and its sheer energy. The German choreographer Uwe Scholz (1958-2004), who was director of dance at the Leipzig Opera, relished creating dances to great symphonic works. During his short lifetime, he was responsible for some 100 choreographies for leading European companies. His choreographic adaptation of the Seventh, of great complexity and originally created for the Stuttgart Ballet, is considered his masterwork. It displays his finesse, his inventiveness and his exceptional musicality, and the work is now part of Les Grands Ballets’ repertoire.
Created in May 2007 for Les Grands Ballets Canadiens, the second part of this double program is danced on Vivaldi's four concertos for violin and orchestra, each painting a season and divided into three movements: Allegro - Adagio (or Largo) - Allegro (or Presto). By appropriating this worldwide hit, the Roman choreographer creates a contemporary ballet integrating an arduous work on pointe and inventing a universe of his own. He explores the different facets and inner impulses of the human being. The bodies of the dancers become real instruments that bind and unbind. The dancers deploy a bubbling gesture and a theatricality crossed by humor, joy, and desire. The carnal impact is overflowing: the bodies are aligning, embracing, and repelling each other with impertinence.
